...and right behind is what I call the Ruelle enchantée, a tiny hidden gem of a passage.

I used to live nearby these homes. Its true the Ruelle is nice in the summer. Some of the exterior renovations are 1950's cheesy. Check out the 'Viger tourist hotel' just on the corner (out of the picture).

Indeed. I've always loved the surviving houses at the bottom end of St-Hubert.

The cheesy portico is kind of fun. There is a more authentic one (the red one) a bit more in the distance.

There are also some taller stone blocks between there and René-Lévesque.

But there is not much good shopping around there, unless one walks to Chinatown. The lack of amenities is rather sad. Hope that can be rectified.

it is also odd that north of Mont-Royal, St-Hubert becomes a very narrow street with working-class Plateau houses, and then north of Laurier. an oddly broad thoroughfare with a mishmash of stuff, including walk-up apartment buildings (not Plateau triplexes) built on very unstable land, so very crooked. Then the "plaza"...